Another of Florida's rarest orchids - Tolumnia bahamensis

[got ants]

Originally Posted by CTB

where is Pops,? I grew up on Cleveland st by the hosp. Now in Vero Beach Thanks

Pop's is on University Drive just north of Sheridan Street on the east side. It's actually just past Davie Rd Ext. Ask for David as he is the brother that manages the orchids.

[CTB]

Thanks for the info, Please join us, in the new social group Florida orchid lovers

[Justin Parkkonen]

Wow!

Finally found a Tolumnia bahamensis today! Quite a bit of work to do, and I have to say, these guys are tiny. Only problem - orchid I found today was not in bloom. Got a call into Rob, park biologist with high hopes. I really want to make some photos of this orchid this season. I will upload the photos tomorrow!

Prem et al, if you decide you would like to assist me in finding a blooming specimen, I would be eternally grateful.

Please disregard my previous brash comments... Just a bit frustrated since I have such little time to hunt and I know this is a tricky one.

Best Regards,
Justin Parkkonen

[phearamedusa]

Glad you were able to find one. You may have even found one that was unknown to the park rangers before. I don't know much about this species but if you missed the bloom time this year you can always go back next year and hopefully catch it in bloom.

[Justin Parkkonen]

After about 14 hours of crawling around on my belly through Duranta excelsa and Prickly Pear, I finally came across a large colony of blooming Tolumnia bahamanensis. First thing I have to do is give it up to Prem, because photographing these plants, especially in their limited habitat, is quite a challenge. I am going through my photos now and I will post them soon.

By the way, this is a beautiful orchid and so graceful among its habitat... I was truly hoping to get a dramatic habitat shot, but it was simply impossible to do so with the colony I came across. Perhaps I will find another down the road.

Well worth the 14 hours!

[Justin Parkkonen]

Oh, and on a side note, I have a more deep respect for those who did not disclose the location of this orchid. This is truly a delicate and limited species.

[prem]

Congratulations, Justin!

I'm sorry I was not able to help you locate any orchids, but I was sworn to secrecy by my information source, so I was honor-bound to keep that confidence.

I would recommend that you also keep your finds secret...while you may trust Person X not to harm any wild orchids, he/she may in turn put trust in Person Y...and on down the chain it goes until one person in the chain is either less-than-scrupulous or less-than-discerning in picking a confidante, and you end up with poached orchids.

Again, congrats on your find!

---Prem

[Justin Parkkonen]

Originally Posted by prem

Congratulations, Justin!

I'm sorry I was not able to help you locate any orchids, but I was sworn to secrecy by my information source, so I was honor-bound to keep that confidence.

I would recommend that you also keep your finds secret...while you may trust Person X not to harm any wild orchids, he/she may in turn put trust in Person Y...and on down the chain it goes until one person in the chain is either less-than-scrupulous or less-than-discerning in picking a confidante, and you end up with poached orchids.

Again, congrats on your find!

---Prem

Prem,

Thank you or the kind words, and I will be sure to keep the location a secret. I keep all orchid locations a secret, but I thought this species would be similar to finding Ghosts (relatively easy if pointed in the right direction). This is much more rare than a ghost and it seems to be sooo sensitive, so I will certainly respect the tradition of keeping its location secret. And I respect you for doing so as well.

I hope there is no bad blood between us.

Best Regards,
Justin Parkkonen

[Justin Parkkonen]

Going to reshoot it today, not satisfied with these photos.

[jrodpad]

Wow! Now I understand why you'd crawl through the Floridian bush - these are spectacular. From reading this post, it seems as though these are exceedingly rare in the wild, but are they also ethically cultivated by growers?

- J